NBA Hall of Famer and longtime executive Jerry West reveals in his autobiography—"West By West: My Charmed, Tormented Life," which is set for release on Wednesday—that he has battled depression since childhood. He also delves into his tenure as general manager of the Los Angeles Lakers, including his acrimonious relationship with coach Phil Jackson and the first time he worked out Kobe Bryant.

The Los Angeles Times asks West, “You write that coach Phil Jackson ‘absolutely had no respect’ for you, and that as your ‘incredible feeling for the Lakers began to wane’ in the late 1990s, in hindsight, you ‘would have left shortly after (Jackson) arrived,’ in 1999. Why was that relationship so bad?

Jerry West hired Phil Jackson to coach the Lakers in 1999. (AP Photo)

"I told (Lakers owner) Jerry Buss to hire him,” West responded. “The only thing I cared about was winning, but you want a relationship with your coach. There was no relationship. You felt, ‘This is not the way we've operated, and we've won without him.' You can't win without great players. As good as Phil is, he might improve a team with bad players, but he wasn't going to win. I felt underappreciated by leadership, and leadership is ownership. As we left the Forum to Staples Center, I'd say, 'What am I doing here? What am I doing to myself?' Destructive feelings, a different drama every day. Leaving was the biggest relief of my life. They had just won a championship, and would win two more. It was time for me to go."

West also says in the book that he was hospitalized for exhaustion after completing the deals to acquire Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal in 1996.

"It got very discouraging,” West tells The Times. “There were so many obstacles along the way, it was a long, drawn-out thing — but Jerry Buss said, 'Let's keep going.' It was easier then, because there weren't a lot of people around (in the front office). It became a quest. We felt it was important to rejuvenate our franchise."

In a purely basketball-related anecdote, West speaks of working out Bryant as a high school player, with defensive stalwart Michael Cooper guarding him. After watching the workout, West said, "I've seen enough."

"Drafting high school players that high back then was not in vogue, but he was such an incredibly talented kid who could not just run fast and jump high ... it was his joy for the game,” West tells The Times. “He'd die on that court. It was so easy to see that. I felt he'd help us on our quest to get Shaquille, and be a tremendous piece — the prince in waiting. I remember telling Jerry the night of the draft, 'We might've got the No. 1 player in the draft (at No. 13).' He is a player for the decades."

West will discuss his autobiography on HBO's "Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel" Tuesday night.